ROI Major

Accounting and Related Services at Navarro College

TX · Certificate Degree · CIP 52.03

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Accounting and Related Services degree from Navarro College earn a median salary of $42,467 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in TX, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $46,110. The degree typically pays for itself in 36.6 years.

Quick Insights

Slow Burn / High Debt Risk

How this degree looks at a glance

A fast read on salary range, break-even speed, living-cost impact, and where graduates from this school usually land.

Salary Ranges

Starting Range

$30,751

Typical Career

$42,467

Top Performers

$51,929

Estimated break-even: 36.6 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$283

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $3,539. Most students can comfortably afford about a $283 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.1x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.5x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Texas buys what costs $0.92 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

Top industries for bachelor's graduates from this school: Health Care & Social Assistance, Public Administration, Manufacturing.

Where Certificate Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 34.2%
Public Administration 17.8%
Manufacturing 6.5%

Institution-wide industry mix for graduates, 5 years after graduation. This is not major-specific. Source: Census PSEO Flows.

5-Year Median Salary — National Purchasing Power Equivalent

$46,110

Nominal: $42,467 in Texas (COL 92.1% of national avg) · 8.6% higher purchasing power

10-Year Earnings Curve

Break-Even Timeline

How long until cumulative earnings advantage exceeds total college investment (tuition + opportunity cost vs. entering workforce directly after high school).

36.6 years to break even
Graduation 15 years

Total Investment

$155,168

4yr tuition + 4yr opportunity cost

HS Graduate Baseline

$38,792/yr

BLS 2023 median, HS diploma

View Raw Data: Median Earnings by Year
Timeframe 25th Pct. Median (50th) 75th Pct.
1 Year After Graduation $24,420 $33,128 $44,249
5 Years After Graduation $30,751 $42,467 $51,929
10 Years After Graduation $33,372 $43,948 $62,818

Source: US Census Bureau Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO), 2025 release. Earnings shown for Bachelor's degree graduates (all cohorts combined).

How We Calculate Purchasing Power

The median salary of $42,467 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in TX, which has a cost-of-living index of 92.1% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $42,467 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9210) = $46,110 National Average equivalent.

COL index source: BLS Regional Consumer Price Index & MIT Living Wage Project, 2023. Full methodology →

Career Verdict

The earnings trajectory for graduates in Accounting and Related Services at Navarro College shows a steady increase over time. One year post-graduation, median earnings stand at $33,128, rising to $42,467 after five years, and reaching $43,948 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary aligns more closely with the national average at approximately $46,109.66, reflecting the cost of living in Texas, which has a COL index of 0.921 compared to the national average of 1.0.

Graduates primarily enter the Health Care & Social Assistance sector, which accounts for 34.2% of employment, followed closely by another segment of Health Care & Social Assistance at 29.9%, and Educational Services at 18.5%. The estimated break-even point for pursuing a degree versus a high-school-only path is approximately 36.6 years, indicating a long-term return on investment. Overall, while the earnings potential is moderate, the career opportunities in stable industries suggest a reasonable ROI for graduates in this field.

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Data sources: US Census Bureau Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO). Cost-of-living index: BLS Regional CPI & MIT Living Wage Project. Cost of attendance: IPEDS. For informational use only; data may be suppressed for small cohort sizes.